A. Pénétra, Malesherbes
Monsieur Lacroix Industrial (acquired by 1929)
Private Collection, England
Private Collection, England (by descent from the above and sold: Sotheby's, London, June 13, 2006, lot 318)
Acquired at the above sale 

Paris, Galeries Georges Petit, Gaston La Touche, 1908, no. 163
Toronto, Toronto Exhibition, 1910, n.n. 
Venice, Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte, 1912, no. 561
Saint-Cloud, Musée des Avelines, Societé nationale des Beaux-Arts, Gaston La Touche, les fantaisies d'un peintre de la Belle Époque, 2014-15, n.n., illustrated in color in the catalogue

Henri Frantz, Gaston La Touche, 1854-1913, London, 1914, p. 19
Selina Baring Maclennon, Gaston La Touche: A Painter of Belle Époque Dreams, Woodbridge, Suffolk, 2009, illustrated in color pl. 40

The canvas is not lined, and the surface area is stable and intact. Examination under UV light shows some fine strokes of inpainting, predominantly to address some fine craquelure, in a number of areas. There are stretcher bar marks visible across the shoulder of the female figure at lower center and above the head of the bearded man to left of center, noticeable but not visually disturbing. There is a 4 inch line of vertical retouching towards the upper right corner. The canvas appears to have been restretched soon after its completion, as an old tacking edge is visible along the extreme left edge when unframed. There is some minor frame abrasion along the extreme edges with some minor associated spots of loss. The painting is in good overall condition
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

L’Entracte captures many of the most delightful fascinations treasured by Gaston La Touche, providing a rich variety of gestures, costumes and expressions typical of the Belle Époque. La Touche was closely associated with a number of eminent playwrights and poets, but his closest friendship was with Edmond Rostand, the French poet and author of the play Cyrano de Bergerac. La Touche painted a series of decorative panels for Rostand's villa in Arnaga, outside Biarritz. This friendship and his association with Roland Knodler, whose wife was in the theater, allowed La Touche frequent trips to the ballet and opera and supplied a rich source of material for an artist who was deeply rooted in the eighteenth-century tradition of Watteau and Lancret. There, La Touche has placed himself in the lower left of the canvas, among the many characters present in the scene, wickedly gazing out of the canvas at the viewer. Showcasing his satirical humor, La Touche speaks to the frailties of human nature. Set among the gaiety of the Belle Époque and reminiscent of both Béraud and Forain, as well as the world of Marcel Proust, this extraordinary painting and the artist's oeuvre at large were undeniably integral for the Impressionists as they sought to capture the simultaneous joy, rapidity and frivolity of impending modernity. 

La Touche was part of the circle of avant-garde artists and writers, such as Edgar Degas (see fig. 1), Édouard Manet and Émile Zola who frequently met at the legendary Cafe de la Nouvelle Athenes to discuss their shared interest in contemporary society. La Touche developed a painting style related to the Impressionists, with loose rapid brushstrokes and, as in Degas’ works, cropped figures, but in a style uniquely his own. La Touche's work would ultimately remain steeped in the tradition of Rococo artists like Fragonard and Watteau, prompting one critic to comment: “The real merit of an artist is to be himself, to remain a modern even when attaching himself to a tradition of his race, and so La Touche, while adoring his masters, remained a man and a painter of today” (Gustav Kobbe, “Brilliant Work of Gaston La Touche” in The Herald, August 1913, pp. 116-17).

La Touche was famously asked by Manet to pose as the male figure seen reflected in the mirror in his last great masterpiece, Un Bar aux Folies-Bergeres but appears to have been replaced at the last moment. 



This work will be included in the La Touche catalogue raisonné being prepared by Selina Baring Maclennan.